State Supreme Court reaffirms Las Lomas defeat

The California Supreme Court denied the final appeal of the Las Lomas development on Dec. 17, 2009, upholding the lower court's ruling in favor of the city of Los Angeles.

This important ruling finally exhausts Las Lomas' ability to move forward with its mega-development project.

Las Lomas, proposed by developer Dan Palmer, sought to add 5,500 homes, two million square feet of commercial space, and a 300-room hotel in the Newhall Pass where the 5 and 14 freeways converge.

"The city of Santa Clarita has long opposed the Las Lomas project and worked successfully with the city of Los Angeles to stop it due to the magnitude of its potential impact and mountainous location in the Newhall Pass," said Santa Clarita Mayor Laurene Weste.

On Aug. 28, 2007, the Santa Clarita City Council unanimously adopted a resolution opposing the city of Los Angeles entering into a supplemental fee agreement with the developers of the large Las Lomas development project.

Though the project site abuts the city of Santa Clarita and is within Santa Clarita's adopted General Plan area, the developer attempted to annex to Los Angeles. A supplemental fee agreement would allow for the expedited review of the Las Lomas project by the city of Los Angeles.

The Santa Clarita City Council's concerns stemmed from the fact that the Las Lomas development would exceed the county's and Santa Clarita's adopted density for the site by more than 1,000 percent.

The proposal also conflicted with Santa Clarita's application with the Local Agency Formation Commission to amend its sphere of influence. Santa Clarita sent the resolution, along with a letter, to the mayor and City Council of Los Angeles.